Preseason Roundup: Week One, Part Two
The preseason is upon us and that means we finally get a chance to see free agents with their new teams and our shiny new rookies in real game action. While many of our dynasty league staples won’t play much the first few weeks, we at least get to see some glimpses of some role players and get a taste for what they may (or may not) be able to do if given a bigger opportunity. While many fantasy football players won’t pay much attention to these games, they’re perfect for the true dynasty enthusiasts to get an early idea on depth charts, player usage and even unearthing a future sleeper. We’ll go through the preseason games as they conclude each week and post this series with some short notes on what we observe during each game.
Miami at Atlanta
Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins first team offense was pretty sharp, justifying a bit of the hype coming from their camp circles lately. Tannehill finished the night going 6-for-6 for 62 yards with a short touchdown pass to Brandon Gibson to cap it off. Tannehill looks like he could be a pretty good QB2 this season and the new offense looks to be really good for him. There wasn’t much else to take from this game, other than disappointing performances by Damien Williams (20 yards on nine touches) and Jarvis Landry (one catch for -1 yard). It would have also been nice to see more from Lamar Miller (11 yards on four carries), but the Dolphins played their first team for just one series, so we won’t hold it against him.
For the Falcons, we were reminded Roddy White is still pretty good as he recorded four catches for 27 yards while playing only one possession. We were also reminded it takes rookies quite a while to rise up the depth charts as heralded rookie running back Devonta Freeman played behind both Jacquizz Rodgers and Antone Smith. Freeman played well as he posted 107 total yards on ten carries and one 57-yard reception. Smith played well even though you don’t see it on the box score as he had a 76-yard touchdown scamper called back for a holding call on Jake Matthews. It’s going to take some time for Freeman to emerge, but this performance was encouraging. Matt Ryan was also sharp, going 7-for-7 in limited action. In my opinion, Ryan remains underrated in many dynasty leagues.
Buffalo at Carolina
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The Bills finally got Sammy Watkins involved as he was able to secure three passes for 21 yards. Mike Williams also started for the Bills and that’s noteworthy since it sent Robert Woods to the bench in two-wide sets. This is going to be a camp battle to watch over the next few weeks. EJ Manuel looked better this week than last, but the Bills offense just doesn’t look very explosive at the moment. Bryce Brown had 64 yards on 11 carries, but we need to see him post those numbers against defensive starters. He was the fourth running back in the game for Buffalo behind Anthony Dixon again this week.
The Panthers rested many of their players, including Cam Newton, DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart, so this game was all about the receivers. The reports on rookie Kelvin Benjamin have been glowing thus far and he showed the ability to catch a low pass and not just a jump ball on his lone catch – a 29-yard touchdown reception. There aren’t many viable options in Carolina and Benjamin is really going to be thrown into the fire. Thus far, he’s responded much better than many expected. Tavarres King had a nice game with four catches and 50 yards. King remains a sleeper and could very well find himself on the field a bunch this season.
Tampa Bay at Jacksonville
Let’s not panic quite yet, but Josh McCown did not look good. He played four series and went 2-for-4 for 20 yards and a pick-six. Mike Glennon looked much better against the “twos,” as he finished the night going 11-for-19 for 140 yards and a touchdown. Austin Seferian-Jenkins caught two passes for 29 yards and looks really big and fast on the field. There wasn’t much to see with the running backs as Doug Martin (six yards on three carries), Bobby Rainey (25 yards on six carries) and Charles Sims (13 yards on six carries) all struggled to get things going. Let’s watch this trio next week as it could be an indicator the Tampa offensive line is either really bad or the Jaguars front seven is really good. It’s too early to make a call on either of those, though. Meanwhile, Mike Evans failed to haul in a pass on his two targets, so I guess we were all wrong and he’s terrible. Please, don’t take that literally.
For the Jags, Marqise Lee drew the start and didn’t catch a pass, either. That was a little disappointing after we’ve seen report after report in camp saying he’s been great, but much like Evans’ performance, it really means nothing. The biggest takeaway from the Jags on this night was the performance of rookie quarterback Blake Bortles who completed 7-of-11 passes for 117 yards and more importantly, looked really good doing it. Bortles looked poised, prepared and not overwhelmed. In short, he looked like the anti-Blaine Gabbert. If he continues to perform this well, he’ll start pushing Chad Henne. At running back, Storm Johnson played behind Jordan Todman (five carries for five yards) and could only muster 21 yards on nine carries. He’ll need to do better to make the team and avoid the practice squad this season.
Philadelphia at Chicago
If there was a day to take advantage of an owner who panics, today is that day. Jordan Matthews caught four passes for 14 yards, but dropped three others. It was an ugly performance for Matthews, but one that likely won’t be repeated. If anyone is doubting him, I’d pounce on that in a heartbeat. Meanwhile, Nick Foles gave us all a reminder it’s going to be next to impossible for him to repeat his insane touchdown-to-interception ratio he posted last year as he really struggled and threw two picks (his total for all of last season) in just under a half of football.  It was nice to see Jeremy Maclin (one catch for 15 yards) back on the field as well. On the sleeper front, Ifeanyi Momah started the game, indicating some of the recent news about him playing well in camp isn’t just smoke. He had two catches for 15 yards, but this merits watching. Matthew Tucker ran for 40 yards and two scores, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves here.
The Bears, and especially Jay Cutler, looked really sharp. Cutler ripped apart the Eagles first team defense for 85 yards and a score on 9-of-13 passing. If he stays healthy, he could be in store for a monster season. The story here for dynasty league owners was the performance of running back Ka’Deem Carey, who struggled to do anything while playing behind Shaun Draughn. Carey was able to gain just 23 yards on ten carries and looked even worse than the stat line indicates. It’s not time to hit the panic button yet, but this performance, combined with camp reports indicating he’s looked like “just a guy” tell us we can at least find the panic button and make sure it has batteries.
Oakland at Minnesota
Darren McFadden had one carry for 23 yards and Maurice Jones-Drew had four touches for 24 yards, while neither was injured. Victory for the Raiders!  In all seriousness, it was nice to see both back on the field. The Raiders offense didn’t do much as Matt Schaub (3-for-7 for 21 yards) didn’t impress and Derek Carr posted a mixed bag as he finished 10-of-16 for 74 yards and an interception. Carr showed some flashed here and there, but didn’t do much to push Schaub quite yet. Other than that, there really wasn’t much to see, though Latavius Murray looked pretty good in limited action.
For the Vikings, Teddy Bridgewater made his debut and unlike fellow rookie Blake Bortles, he looked like a rookie. He finished the night completing 6-of-13 passes for 49 yards, but really had a hard time moving the offense and was sacked twice. He played a lot of the game and even had time with the first unit, but this debut was a little shaky at best. The problem Bridgewater faces is the fact Matt Cassel actually played pretty well as he completed 5-of-6 passes for 62 yards. In short, Bridgewater has a ways to go. Cordarrelle Patterson had three catches for 38 yards, but many dynasty owners likely threw their remote controls as all three of his receptions didn’t go for 90-yard touchdown scores. The expectations for Patterson are through the roof and he has almost no chance of fulfilling some people’s deranged visions. At running back, Jerick McKinnon was solid with 45 yards on 12 carries. He’s being scooped in dynasty leagues everywhere and you shouldn’t be caught holding the bag – this kid has some real talent and makes for a perfect long-term roster stash.
New Orleans at St. Louis
The story for the Saints was running back Mark Ingram who looked like he was playing at Alabama while posting 83 yards and a score on just eight carries. Let’s not go crazy quite yet, but that was the best glimmer of hope we’ve seen in a while. Khiry Robinson also played early and often, while rushing for 23 yards and a touchdown. Robinson just looks like he belongs and did nothing to extinguish thoughts he could be a nice sleeper this season. The debut of Brandin Cooks was a success as he  caught five passes for 55 yards and a touchdown. Cooks also worked as the punt returner. He’s both quick and fast and should add a dynamic to the offense that makes the Saints even scarier.
On the Rams side, Tre Mason made his debut and didn’t do too much to push Benny Cunningham, no less Zac Stacy. Mason finished with just 51 yards on 15 carries. Kenny Britt did, in fact, start for the Rams and while he didn’t receive a target, his value hasn’t been higher in about a year as he looks to have pinned down a starting spot and has been great thus far in camp. Stedman Bailey caught a 24-yard touchdown reception to remind owners he could be a nice producer when he returns from his suspension.
We’ll be back with the next set, including the debut of Johnny Manziel with the Browns.
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Ken is on Twitter at DLF_KenK
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